Monday, September 28, 2009

Press's MK25 million donation condemned

Professor Mathews Chikaonda, Press Corporation Chief Executive Officer whose MK25 million donation to a commercial hospital is being questioned.

By Emmanuel Sobilika

Professor Mathews Chikaonda, the Chief Executive Officer for one of Malawi’s leading conglomerate organizations, Press Corporations Limited has come under serious scrutiny following a donation of MK25 million worth dialysis machine to a lucrative healthy facility, the Mwaiwathu Private Hospital.

Mwaiwathu Private Hospital is situated in the commercial city, Blantyre and because of its higher service charges; the facility only offers help to patients who can be described as of ‘higher status’ by Malawian standards.

Chikaonda, made the donation to Mwaiwathu Private Hospital at the end of August on the pretext of ‘corporate social responsibility’ to the Malawi public.

However, Mwaiwathu Hospital is high class private hospital not accessed by an ordinary local Malawian.

Sources in the Press Corporation have disclosed that using his powers as CEO for the conglomerate, Chikaonda coxed some of the organization’s subsidiaries to contribute towards this multi-million Kwacha donation.

The companies that contributed to the MK25 million donation are National Bank of Malawi Limited, MK10 million, Limbe Leaf Malawi Limited MK6 million, Telecom Networks Malawi Limited MK4 million and the mother body Press Corporations Limited MK5million.

By virtual of his position as CEO for Press Corporation, Chikaonda is board chairperson for all the above mentioned companies.

Malawi Digest has also established that Press Corporations Limited is one of the majority shareholders for Mwaiwathu Private Hospital and that Professor Mathews Chikaonda is one of its directors.

As one of the directors for the hospital, Chikaonda has financial benefits from the hospital and an economist interviewed by Malawi Digest suggests that the Press Corporation CEO would make everything possible to make sure that business is viable at the commercial medical facility, hence the donation.

Making the donation at the hospital premises in Blantyre, Chikaonda said that the availability of the dialysis machine at the hospital would save the country’s forex reserves as many people are sent outside the country to seek medical help due to absence of the dialysis machine.

It is a fact that only well to do people go outside Malawi to seek medical help unless sponsored.

Malawi has only one dialysis machine at the Kamuzu Central Hospital in the administrative capital, Lilongwe and a lot of people have suggested if a similar facility was made available at the country’s biggest referral hospital, the Queen Elizabeth Central in Blantyre, would help many Malawians who suffering and dying in silence due to lack of the facility.

Speaking in an interview with Malawi Digest on Monday afternoon, two prominent Malawian economists questioned the underlying principle for Press Corporation to donate such huge sums of money to a commercial business entity that does not serve interests of a local poor Malawian.

“If this donation was made to a free public facility like the Queens, this would have gone a long way in serving the poor Malawian who is dying in silence due to lack of the machines in the country,” said one economist who did not want to be mentioned.

He said Press Corporation and the other three organizations involved in the donation have no proper basis for such a huge donation to a commercial hospital where there is also suspicion of conflict of interest.

“It may be concluded that Professor Chikaonda influenced the other companies to donate to Mwaiwathu for his personal gains as he is also one of the directors for the hospital,” he said.

The other economist concurred that apart from serving what he described as ‘people with status’ in Malawian society, Mwaiwathu Hospital also serves patients from southern Africa.

“So what is there for a Malawian if the hospital also serves patients from Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia among many other counties on commercial basis,” he wondered.

According to information gathered by Malawi Digest after a Google search on the internet, the Medical Aid Society of Malawi (Masm) who are also shareholders in Mwaiwathu Hospital, they describe the facility as the most expensive in Malawi.

“State-of-the-art Mwaiwathu Hospital is probably one of the country’s most expensive hospitals. Yet over half the patients at the hospital do not pay for consultation and only have to pay 20 percent or less of the rest of bill,” says Masm in a marketing message for its services on its website after the search.

Another search engine provides the following information for Mwaiwathu Hospital: “The 64-bed Mwaiwathu Private Hospital in Blantyre provides some of the best medical treatment in the country, but is too expensive for all but the wealthiest businessmen and highest ranking government officials.”

With all these attributes from information gathered through a search on the internet, it is not known why Professor Mathews Chikaonda opted to spend MK25 million on Mwaiwathu Private Hospital and not a public hospital like Queen Elizabeth Central where the facility is open to the poor local Malawian.

Meanwhile, Malawi Digest understands that Press Corporation Limited operates under a Press Trust Deed, the Press Trust.

The company’s website explains the following: “Press Trust is a trust governed by the trustees, who determine the form and quantum of contributions Press Trust will make towards the development and betterment of Malawi. The object of the Press Trust is to act on behalf of the citizens of Malawi.”

It is not known if in making the MK25 donation to a commercial entity like Mwaiwathu Private Hospital, Professor Mathews Chikaonda considered the role of the Press Trust in Malawi and if this private hospital follows in that category-Malawi Digest.

24 comments:

  1. koma zoona angapereke ku Mwaiwathu Queens ilipo?He has to answer becuse this is killing Malawians.

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  2. Chikaonda is selfish and greedy ask even his relative will tell u more

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  3. This dialysis machine should be withdrawn from Mwaiwathu and be given to Queen Elizabeth immediately. We don't want thieves like Chikaonda to steal from poor Malawians. What a Shame.

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  4. I am shocked to hear this story. Thanks so much Digest for exposing Chikaonda. All along, he was pretending like he loves Malawians but he wants to enrich himself. I truly believe that Bingu should fire him. This machine could be useful at Queens where we find poor Malawians. That is what social responsibility is all about

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  5. Koma abale, now who are we going to trust? I used to think Chikaonda could be trusted but he is just another greedy individual. How can you donate such an important to machine to Mwaiwathu? Mwaiwathu is not for poor Malawians and their fees are exhobitant. Mwaiwathu could afford to buy this on their own with the type of fees they charge.

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  6. At first, I thought Malawi Digest was just about politics backing the government of Ngwazi Dr Bingu wa Mutharika. I must confess that I was wrong. You have very professional and objective journalists. This is one of your best stories ever. Keep on the good job.

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  7. Malawi Digest, I am impressed, good writing, more investigative and no personal attacks. This is a good job and this article deserves an award surely.

    Keep well and give us more of these non-political but juicy stories.

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  8. Good job. I am happy with the objective journalism in this piece.

    Limbikirani a mnyamata, mukuthandiza kuphunzitsa mtundu wa Malawi.

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  9. This is a master piece. I don't know if Malawi Digest has ever written a better article like this.

    Good job.

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  10. A Malawi tidzipemphera kwambiri. now look we can't trust anybody. Mulungu tithandizeni, I didn't expect this from Chikaonda who is well educated and pretends to be patriotic about Malawi.

    Mwaiwathu is a SADC hospital and not Malawi only.

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  11. Anthu akufa ku Queens koma a Chikaonda machine akapereka ku Mwaiwathu.Ndiye mwathu ndalamazo ndi 25 million kwacha? Where is our country heading to?

    Mulungu tithandizeni.

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  12. This is an interesting story brought out by the Digest. We need to debate this throughly iuf Chikaonda was correct in his decision because I believe ndalama zimaperekedwa kwa anthu opeza bwino kale. After all this hospital also serves high class foreigners.

    This is food for thought. I like this article.

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  13. digets u r doing the best.Chikaonda zoona reaching this extent.
    WHY GIVING TO MWAIWATHU NOT KU GULUPU?May u pliz ansa us.Nobody to trust only God.

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  14. mwaiwathu can afford to by the machine......chikaonda is being witch hunted, he will not be CEO COME JANUARY. WATCH THIS SPACE.

    ANTU SIMIKUZIWA WATS GOIN ON. KOMA WATCH THIS

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  15. That is strange and even if well intentioned; it’s something which smells a rat.

    Tawaunikeni-unikeni, how they are connected politically or as friends what so ever because that hospital mainly save those with monies and Press should do things to benefit more people who have less access to have good medical facility in our congested governments hospitals.

    J

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  16. Thank you Malawi Digest for informing Malawians about this dubious transaction. In fact I am more dismayed seeing that some funds even came from my company TNM without even being sanctioned by us, the members of this listed company.

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  17. koma zoopsya kwabasi donation ku Mwai wathu? Mwai wathu anthu okuba kwabasi dont let Criminal Chikaonda walk free on this one.

    Mwaiwathu can manage to acquire this type of machine mmene amatipwetekera ndi macharges awoo

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  18. Bad news indeed! I don't know why this man is
    trusted so much by the 'powers that be'.

    First, this man is no longer a professor. A professor is given to someone who is actively engaged in academic or professional research. He is not.

    Second, I have never seen any real clout in this man to govern a big conglomerate like Press. I think Press has performed the worst since this guy took the helms of power.

    Third, the man performed decimally as a minister. We used regard this man highly before we knew real economists in the names of Bingu and Goodwell. Pano, anasuluka uheni amaneyu!

    Forth, this guy does not think like a cultured Malawian being at all. He does not have adequate Malawian roots, he does not empathize with the real Malawian poor. He may not even have tested real poverty at all. He is a big dreamer.

    Achotchedwe basi kaka ameneyu.

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  19. Do you think chikaonda when he is ill can go to queens? ,hence the donation to mwaiwathu that'S where he goes. Shame on you chikaonda think malawian and about your fellow poor malawians down in the villages when there are sick there go to queens not mwaiwathu.

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  20. Well To be honest I dont really know the use of this machine, Is it for checking sugar level, kapena blood pressure, somebody say something. But what ever the case, the machine has to be taken back from Mwaiwathu and be given to QECH, thats where malawians go. mwaiwathu is a private entity and should be opereted as such regardless of who owns it. and as for pro Chikonda, I guess there is too much in his plate, chairman of all those companies where do you find the time being CEO of press at the same time?

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  21. people lets try to look at it from a positive angle, this machine will indeed help the country save on forex, do you have an idea on how much people spend to get the kind of service, now they can get it locally. point two, QECH has alot of expensive equipment koma sizisamalika chifukwa ndizaulele hence no money for mantainance, so once it has a fault, basi kuunjika, where as at Mwaiwathu, they will have it working for a longer time. if anything, people should lobby that mwaiwathu should not charge highly on services emanating from the machine at least for the first 5 years, kind of paying for the cost to the public.

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  22. Dialysis machine is a machine that filters a patient's blood to remove excess water and waste products when the kidneys are damaged, dysfunctional, or missing. It is an artificial kidney.

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  23. this evil at its full exposure. if mwaiwathu bought this machine we would have no say.no love.MAY THE PEOPLE WAKE UP.MOST PEOPLE GO TO MWAIWATHU not because of choice. They go because of a desperate need to save a life . Normaly in the last days the patient, and exhausting every resource they have. This is plain simple , you are equiping YOUR PERSONAL hospital NOTHING TO DO with alocal malawian. good day

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  24. I WOULD LIKE TO ASK A QUESTION. NO BODY THINKS ABOUT QEEN AND LLW CENTRAL. AND ALSO THOSE WHO GO TO MWAIWATHU ITS BECOZ THEY ARE UNDER MASM. WHAT ABOUT ONE WHO IS NEARLY DYING WITH A KIDNEY PROBLEM. WILL BE LEFT TO DIE COZ HE DOES NOT HAVE MASM TO COVER HIS EXPENSES AT MWAIWATHU.

    MALAWIANS WAKE UP THIS IS RIDICULOUS. LET OTHER COMPANIES DONATE TO THESE GOVERNMENT HOSPITAL TO SHOW CHIKAONDA THEIR REAL INTELLIGENCE. AN INTELLIGENT PERSON MUST THINK OF THOSE WHO CAN NOT AFFORD.

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